Firefighting: How to correct a molder's worst nightmare

Plastics processing has a tendency to quickly fall into one of two categories: tribulation.. or turmoil. Early on, I learned the true meaning of "firefighting" as it pertains to the world of plastics injection molding. It is real easy to fall into the "Band-Aid" trap. Ignorance of mold, press, material and manpower failures can embed itself into a company's overall ideology and approach.

The end result nearly always ends in catastrophe!

How many times have I heard the statement, "It always runs that way," and felt the mental cringe that I can only compare to fingernails being drug heavily across a chalkboard? Bad processes run the way they do because no thought is put into root cause. No research is performed to clarify the true problem(s), and little or no effort is put forth to not only identify the problem, but also make an effort to resolve the issue. The industry's mutually shared quest for continuous improvement is easily preached, but commitment to the concept can often fall short....